Hello again. Sorry I have missed a couple of WIRs. I have been busy reading books for SPFBO 2017 and can't share my opinion of those books quite yet. I hope you have had some good books to enjoy while I have been offline. Let me tell you of two of the non-SPFBO books I have been reading.
First up is Andy Weir's Artemis. This standalone novel has been released recently but was I pretty lucky to receive it from the publisher via NetGalley a few months ago.
The story is set on the moon and features the plucky Jazz, who spends her days pushing contraband and living just shy on the right side of the law. She grew up on the moon, in the city of Artemis and loves every inch of it. When she gets an offer that will give her the life she yearns for it seems almost too good to be true. If it seems to good to be true it usually is. Its not long before Jazz is on the run from a criminal syndicate that plans to take over Artemis. With just her wits and her friends Jazz is determined to save the only home she has ever really known.
I rather enjoyed Artemis although it did take a couple of chapters for me to adjust to Jazz and her rather dubious moral code. This book is completely different in content and tone to Martian so if you are expecting another good guy then you may be disappointed with the more complex Jazz. I liked Artemis as a setting and all the sciency bits that made the plot more credible. The plot was interspersed with letters between Jazz and her childhood pen friend and this plot device helps to develop Jazz as a character and later on to help advance the plot. This is a quick, easy read with a strong female lead that I enjoyed. Science fiction fans be sure to take a chance on Artemis.
Book 2 for me was the third instalment of the Crossbreed series by Dannika Dark - Deathtrap. In this instalment Raven Black is set on the trail of criminal who is kidnapping breed children, killing their mothers and then selling them on the black market. All of the 'gang' are involved in this one and different sides are told through POV chapters. All this comes with Raven trying to reconcile letting her human life go and saying good-bye to her father. Helping her is the hunky vampire Christian who Raven is drawn towards, despite her hatred of vampires.
This series is very much light relief for me. The plot isn't challenging but there is enough substance to make it readable. Raven is not without her flaws which makes her a more likable character but Dark introduces a coincidental meeting that, in my view, adds nothing to the main romance of the story. Overall, an OK read but I am not expecting any big surprises.
That is it for me this week. Hope to be back next week but I do a few more SPFBO books to read so if I miss another week it's not because I'm not reading. Be back soon!
The story is set on the moon and features the plucky Jazz, who spends her days pushing contraband and living just shy on the right side of the law. She grew up on the moon, in the city of Artemis and loves every inch of it. When she gets an offer that will give her the life she yearns for it seems almost too good to be true. If it seems to good to be true it usually is. Its not long before Jazz is on the run from a criminal syndicate that plans to take over Artemis. With just her wits and her friends Jazz is determined to save the only home she has ever really known.
I rather enjoyed Artemis although it did take a couple of chapters for me to adjust to Jazz and her rather dubious moral code. This book is completely different in content and tone to Martian so if you are expecting another good guy then you may be disappointed with the more complex Jazz. I liked Artemis as a setting and all the sciency bits that made the plot more credible. The plot was interspersed with letters between Jazz and her childhood pen friend and this plot device helps to develop Jazz as a character and later on to help advance the plot. This is a quick, easy read with a strong female lead that I enjoyed. Science fiction fans be sure to take a chance on Artemis.
This series is very much light relief for me. The plot isn't challenging but there is enough substance to make it readable. Raven is not without her flaws which makes her a more likable character but Dark introduces a coincidental meeting that, in my view, adds nothing to the main romance of the story. Overall, an OK read but I am not expecting any big surprises.
That is it for me this week. Hope to be back next week but I do a few more SPFBO books to read so if I miss another week it's not because I'm not reading. Be back soon!
Artemis
Crown, November 14, 2017
Hardcover and eBook, 320 pages
Crown, November 14, 2017
Hardcover and eBook, 320 pages
The bestselling author of The Martian returns with an irresistible new near-future thriller—a heist story set on the moon.
Jasmine Bashara never signed up to be a hero. She just wanted to get rich.
Not crazy, eccentric-billionaire rich, like many of the visitors to her hometown of Artemis, humanity’s first and only lunar colony. Just rich enough to move out of her coffin-sized apartment and eat something better than flavored algae. Rich enough to pay off a debt she’s owed for a long time.
So when a chance at a huge score finally comes her way, Jazz can’t say no. Sure, it requires her to graduate from small-time smuggler to full-on criminal mastermind. And it calls for a particular combination of cunning, technical skills, and large explosions—not to mention sheer brazen swagger. But Jazz has never run into a challenge her intellect can’t handle, and she figures she’s got the ‘swagger’ part down.
The trouble is, engineering the perfect crime is just the start of Jazz’s problems. Because her little heist is about to land her in the middle of a conspiracy for control of Artemis itself.
Trapped between competing forces, pursued by a killer and the law alike, even Jazz has to admit she’s in way over her head. She’ll have to hatch a truly spectacular scheme to have a chance at staying alive and saving her city.
Jazz is no hero, but she is a very good criminal.
That’ll have to do.
Propelled by its heroine’s wisecracking voice, set in a city that’s at once stunningly imagined and intimately familiar, and brimming over with clever problem-solving and heist-y fun, Artemis is another irresistible brew of science, suspense, and humor from #1 bestselling author Andy Weir.
Deathtrap
A Crossbread Novel 3
Dannika Dark, September 2017
Trade Paperback and eBook, 326 pages
A Crossbread Novel 3
Dannika Dark, September 2017
Trade Paperback and eBook, 326 pages
The explosive third installment in USA Today Bestselling author Dannika Dark’s Crossbreed series.
“YOU MIGHT BE DONE WITH THE PAST, BUT THE PAST ISN’T DONE WITH YOU.”
For Raven Black, hunting criminals is second nature. So is denial. It’s not easy moving forward with one foot stuck in the past. But a new case offers her a much-needed distraction when Keystone accepts their toughest assignment yet—to track down an elusive criminal who’s selling children on the black market.
Their investigation leads them deep into the underbelly of the Breed world, a place both treacherous and enticing. With no room for mistakes, Raven makes a tough decision to lock the door to her past before it interferes with her job. The only trouble? Christian holds the key.
The stakes are high, and a shocking twist turns everything on its head. Will they catch this criminal before more lives are lost? Find out in the latest edge-of-your-seat installment of the Crossbreed series.
I LOVED Artemis. I agree, it takes a minute to get used to Jazz. But man... I thought she was hysterical. And I really loved Svoboda! I'll be posting my review of this book tomorrow :)
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